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India’s expected familiarity with the Basin Reserve pitch because of their recent experiences in England was of no assistance as seen from their 10-wicket loss to New Zealand today.Team coach John Wright said the pitch for the first National Bank Series Test seamed and bounced more than the pitches the side struck in England.”I said before the match that the biggest Test for us was adjusting to the conditions, and clearly we didn’t manage that,” he said.On pitches like the Basin Reserve, batsmen had to spend a lot of time at the wicket and India hadn’t achieved that. Wright said he thought New Zealand’s Mark Richardson had shown what sort of application was needed.Asked whether he thought the side had enough time to adapt to New Zealand conditions, Wright said: “This is one country where the more you get before a Test the better and that would probably have helped.”But it is a fact of life. We’ve got the players. We have got some wonderful batsmen who, when they get in, can express themselves with their shots and they are good to watch.”In their shot selection they have to be a lot more judicious on these wickets.”We have to be a lot stronger in that area in the next Test,” Wright said.He thought the side had done a good job in containing New Zealand to a lead of only 86 and he felt that if India could get to 150-160 runs ahead that they could put the pressure on the home side.Captain Sourav Ganguly was clearly disappointed at the after-match press conference but he was in no mood to offer excuses.The side had failed to bat well in either innings and in the second innings especially, it was below par.”We just did not bat well. We had come back and I was hopeful that we could score 250-300 runs to make a contest of the game.”We will have to do our best in Hamilton to try and square the series.”All we can do is hope we will bat much better in this game,” Ganguly said.The side’s batsmen had scored runs all around the world on different types of pitches. They would need to get their mindset right to get back in the next match,” he said.Wright said the performance of left-arm medium-fast bowler Zaheer Khan had been a bonus for the side and India’s job was now to fine someone to pair up with him from the other end.Wright said he was not surprised at New Zealand developing pitches more like that at the Basin with more bounce than has traditionally been the case.”You always play to your strengths. It is a successful formula, they are winning matches, although they might miss the odd day or two’s play but all credit to them.But the art of touring was to adapt to the conditions you were faced with.”At home in the last two years we have been reasonably strong but you have to adjust to conditions when you are touring,” he said.”If we can put the runs on the board in Hamilton we will have the same opportunity,” he said.India had been beaten fair and square and it didn’t serve any purpose to make excuses. The side was a strong one but it had batted badly. He believed it could turn things around.Getting through the new ball would be a key, he said.

Somerset Sabres got their NUL National League campaign back on track at Cardiff today when they recorded a resounding victory over Glamorgan Dragons to earn themselves four valuable points in their fight for division one survival.After being put into bat, Somerset lost Matt Wood early but Peter Bowler and Jamie Cox took them onto 34 before Cox was caught by Dean Cosker in the gully off Andrew Davies for 12.Mike Burns came in and hurried the score along until with the score on 58, Bowler was bowled by Darren Thomas for 18. Burns stayed for a little longer but was eventually out for 25 caught by Glamorgan captain Steve James off Thomas.Coming in at 58 for 3 Keith Parsons worked hard to establish himself, and then after being joined by Ian Blackwell brought up the hundred for the Sabres.The demise of Blackwell shortly afterwards bowled by Adrian Dale for 10, brought Rob Turner to the wicket, to share in what was the most productive partnership of the innings for the Sabres.During the course of the next 16 overs Parsons and Turner plundered 81 all important runs from the Glamorgan attack. Parsons brought up his own fifty and Somerset’s 150 at the same time, and hit one big six off Cosker before he was caught at deep mid wicket by David Hemp off Robert Croft for an invaluable 70. Parsons had faced 68 balls, and hit 1×6 and 3×4.Matt Bulbeck came in to join Turner, but six runs later the wicket-keeper was out to a stunning catch by Cosker at wide mid on after he had scored 31.Bulbeck brought up the 200 and then hit two enormous sixes over the longest boundary on the ground, and Keith Dutch added some quick runs before the rains came down to put a premature end to the innings with Somerset on 245 for7. At the close Dutch was unbeaten on 26 with Bulbeck on 24.Chasing a reduced total of 234 from 34 overs Glamorgan got off to a quick start with Croft taking 12 off the first over that was bowled by Simon Francis, who was returning to the side after a long lay off through injury.Ian Thomas set off at a similar pace at the other end, dispatching Bulbeck’s first ball to the boundary, but his success was short lived as he edged the left armer to Turner to make Glamorgan 18 for 1.Croft continued to take chances in an attempt to move Glamorgan into a winning position should the Duckworth Lewis system be enforced but in the third over took one chance too many when he hoisted a ball from Francis to extra cover where Dutch took a diving catch close to the ground.Hemps stay at the wicket was short lived. In the next over from Bulbeck he gave a catch to second slip where Dutch gratefully received the offering, and Glamorgan total had slipped to 29 for 3.Bulbeck struck again in his next over when he trapped the Glamorgan skipper James LBW to make the Dragons 32 for 4. Nine runs later Dale followed his captain back to the pavilion after he skied a ball from Francis into the waiting gloves of Turner.Matthew Maynard and Mike Powell started to look settled and added 17 until Maynard edged a ball to Turner to give Bulbeck his fourth wicket of the innings and reduce the Dragons to 58 for 6.Mike Burns replaced Francis for the 13th over and immediately accounted for Darren Thomas. Two balls later Burns trapped Andrew Davies LBW and Glamorgan were 65 for 8.Burns hit the stumps with the first ball of his next over to dispose of Cosker, but last man Owen Parkin and Powell proved more obstinate.The final pair added 45 until they were eventually parted by Blackwell and Glamorgan were all out for 118 in the 22nd over to give Somerset Sabres victory by 108 runs.Immediately after the game a delighted Kevin Shine told me: "This was a thoroughly professional performance from the boys. The wicket wasn’t easy at the start, but we had good knocks from Keith Parsons and Rob Turner, and then some quick runs at the end from Matt Bulbeck and Keith Dutch."He continued: "Their boys came out at a rate as we knew they would, but Simon Francis and Matt Bulbeck kept their heads and put the ball in the right place and we kept taking wickets. I really am very pleased with today’s result."

After efforts to keep Bob Woolmer as their director of coaching came to nothing, Warwickshire have appointed former Australian Test batsman John Inverarity to the post on a two-year contract. Inverarity has had experience of English cricket before, making a good impression when he has helped Kent in the past. Woolmer is to return to his home in South Africa on a permanent basis.Meanwhile Warwickshire have offered a contract to New Zealand opening bowler Shane Bond to become one of their two overseas players next season. Bond took the place of Shaun Pollock earlier in the season when the South African went on international duty, taking 12 wickets in three matches. Warwickshire are also hoping that Jonathan Trott, the Boland opening batsman with English qualifications, will accept a contract to play at Edgbaston next season.Gloucestershire are pursuing Mohammad Akram, the Pakistani Test pace bowler, but not as an overseas player. Akram is married to an English girl and hopes to have a passport in time for next season. He played for Northamptonshire in 1997. Ian Harvey has ended speculatikon that he would not continue as one of the overseas players next season by signing a new contract. Harvey was influential in Gloucestershire’s run of success in one-day cricket.

Australian authorities will continue to monitor events in the region but this year’s Test and one-day international tours of Pakistan appear in grave doubt after today’s fatal bomb blast in Karachi.In the wake of the explosion that led to the deaths of at least 13 people outside the touring New Zealand team’s hotel in the city, the Australian Cricket Board (ACB) confirmed in a statement that it would continue to observe a time-honoured process in assessing safety conditions in foreign destinations ahead of its players’ scheduled departure in August.”With some months to go before we travel to Pakistan the situation is clearly quite fluid,” said ACB Chief Executive, James Sutherland.”Given the time frame it would be inappropriate to lock into a position today.”The ACB will continue to receive advice from the relevant experts to help the Board make a proper judgement on the situation in Pakistan.”I am also conscious of recent events that have affected international cricket in this region, and I will be speaking to the Pakistan Cricket Board as soon as possible about how Australia can help them in managing this situation,” he said.Sutherland also conceded, however, that New Zealand Cricket’s decision today to immediately cancel its team’s tour of the country fuelled his organisation with heightened concerns over Australia’s potential visit.”What has happened today in Pakistan has obviously caused significant concern to us,” he said in an interview with Channel Ten.”We have a pretty good process we work through ahead of tours and we’re in the midst of that at the moment. But what has happened today obviously adds a layer of concern to that,” he added, clarifying that while the ACB was keen for the tour to proceed, the security of its players remained paramount.A withdrawal from the tour would make it Australia’s second such decision within the space of six months, after it opted to cancel a trip to Zimbabwe as a result of political turmoil in that country. It also forfeited matches in Sri Lanka in the 1996 World Cup because of civil unrest.Dates and venues for Australia’s tour of Pakistan have yet to be finalised but it is likely that any such visit would be split into separate one-day international and Test campaigns on either side of September’s ICC Champions Trophy tournament in Sri Lanka.Speculation in both nations has centred on the possibility of either a two or three-Test series being held in the opening weeks of October, though neither of the two countries’ Boards has been drawn into public comment on either the likely timing or number of games.The one-day leg of the tour is due to involve a triangular series of matches staged as part of the Pakistan Cricket Board’s Golden Jubilee Celebrations in early September.The third country scheduled to compete in that series was New Zealand.

A superb exhibition of swing bowling on a blameless pitch, reduced Warwickshire to 16-6 wickets off 15 overs. The catalyst to this collapse was the smart run out of Mohamed Sheikh, off a mis-field, by Chris Brown.Cornwall’s Justin Stephens (2-23 off 10 overs) and Devon’s Ian Bishop (3-13 off 10 overs) did the early damage. Chris Brown and Martyn Dobson followed up with 20 overs of immaculate offspin to keep the pressure on the lower order batsmen.A couple of chances went begging as Nick Warren (64 not out) batted resolutely to save the situation. Even so, at 81-9 it looked all over, but a last wicket stand between Tom Mees and Warren added 51 in 16 overs, before Warren was run out for 20 in the 48th over.A target of 133 should have been comfortable, but it was not to be. Fine seam bowling from Mohamed Sheikh and Tom Mees reduced the Minor Counties to 56-6.Richard Howitt produced a magnificent innings and turned the game on its head in an 8th wicket stand of 49 with Justin Stephens, before Howitt was bowled for 69 with 4 runs still required. In tense finish, Stephens batted admirably to hit the winning runs with just three balls to spare.

Manicaland narrowly lost their latest Logan Cup game in Harare on Monday against Mashonaland A at Alexandria Sports Club. Still missing their Zimbabwe players, they were dealt another blow when Andre Soma and Tino Mawoyo were denied permission from their headmaster to miss two days from school.Two untested newcomers were hastily recruited to replace these talented players, with resulting fragility in the batting order. Once again the bottom half totally failed, contributing less than 30 in two completed innings – and less than 50 for the last two matches combined.Winning the toss, Neil Ferreira invited Mashonaland A’s new skipper Henry Olonga to field. In addition to this job it’s understood Olonga will lead controversial club side Takashinga next season. That might be the toughest assignment the genial speedster will ever have.Coming back from injury he was far from his quickest, managing only one wicket in the innings. On a slow first day dominated by Neil Ferreira’s second century of the campaign, Manicaland struggled to come to terms with a difficult pitch. Only Guy Whittall with a composed 53 and Kingsley Went (17) reached double figures from the rest of the Manicaland batting line-up.On day two they inched to 255 all out by mid-morning, with debutant schoolboy Michael Robinson scoring a lengthy unbeaten 8 to give his captain precious support. For Mashonaland A Gavin Rennie (10-1-27-3) with his left-arm finger spin was the most successful bowler, with Mutendera (two for 28) and Manyande (two for 52) the best of the rest.Days two and three saw the pitch deteriorate further, with cracks opening and bounce becoming unpredictable. Mashonaland A did well to establish a 52-run first-innings lead in the face of some excellent bowling by off-spinner Richie Sims (53-14-132-6) and leg-spinner Keegan Taylor (11.5-0-42-3). Sims in particular bowled a near perfect length and line with occasional changes of pace to concede only three an over during a marathon spell.Openers Rennie (82) and Andre Neethling (32) batted well before Neethling was run out and Rennie was castled by a big leg-spinner out of the rough from Taylor. Good contributions came from Alistair Maregwede (39), Olonga (37 not out) and 16-year-old schoolboy Prosper Utseya (58) – who was eventually bowled by a straight one from his inter-school rival Taylor.Starting their second innings shortly before lunch on the third day, Manicaland did well to hit 208 on a crumbling pitch to post a target of 155. The innings only lasted into the second over of the fourth morning, leaving Mashonaland a full day to chase. All the batsmen struggled, with Richie Sims and Guy Whittall each making 36 and only Kingsley Went (50 not out) coming to terms with the conditions.

Twenty-eight students have been officially welcomed to the 2002programme of the Shell Cricket Academy of St. George’s University.President of the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB), Reverend Wes Hallwas among those who participated in the welcome ceremony on Thursday(May 16) at the True Blue campus of St. Georges University, Grenada.He told the young cricketers from the Caribbean and the Americas thathard work and not talent would determine how successful they were.Grenada’s Minister of Tourism Hon. Brenda Hood who also joined inwelcoming the students, pledged the full support of her government,and noted that her ministry is on a mission to form more strategiclinks between sport and tourism.External Affairs Manager of Shell, Roger Brathwaite, and St. George’sUniversity Dean, Dr. Allen Pensick also addressed the new recruits tothe prestigious three-month programme that is a joint venture by theWest Indies Cricket Board, Shell Antilles and Guianas Ltd and St.Georges University.Following the ceremony, Director of the Shell Cricket Academy, Dr.Rudi Webster gave the students an outline of the programme and Rev.Wes Hall gave a master class on fast bowling and West Indies crickethistory.The members of the 2002 class come from a number of different parts ofthe Caribbean and the Americas. The nations represented includeAnguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Bermuda, Canada, Grenada,Guyana, Jamaica, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and theGrenadines, Trinidad and Tobago and the United States of America. TheAcademy runs from May 16th to August 8th.

Lahore Blues earned their first win of the One-day tournament (Associations), as they crushed Sargodha by 4 wickets in the second-round match played at Sargodha Sports Stadium.Put into bat, the home side capitulated for 207 in 47 overs, with none of their batsmen reaching a big total despite getting into 20’s and 30’s. Misbah-ul-Haq, the skipper, top scored with 36 (71 balls, 3 fours) and Abid Hussain was run out for 31 (38 balls, 2 fours).After losing their top eight batsmen for 166 in the 40th over, Sargodha tail-enders did well to take the score past the 200-run mark, with Shafiq Ahmed and Waqar Ahmed batting fairly quickly for their respective scores of 29 (15 balls, 3 fours, 1 six) and 26 (33 balls, 1 six).For Lahore, Salman Qadir and Ashraf Ali bowled well, bagging two wickets each for 32 (10 overs) and 8 (1.3 overs), respectively.Sarfraz Ahmed, the lanky left-handed pace man, bowled well for Gujranwala, grabbing four wickets for 49. Yet his efforts were just not enough to stop Lahore batsmen from reaching the target with about 5 overs and 4 wickets to spare.Faisal Ashraf, batting at one-down position top scored with 67 off 95, hitting six boundaries. Shahnawaz Adeel got a cautious 30 off 62 balls, whereas wicket keeper Kamran Akmal forced the pace in the end by his attacking 47 off 38 ball, which contained 3 fours and a six.The second Pool B match, played at Jinnah Stadium, Gujranwala, saw Karachi Blues opener Tariq Haroon smashing a superb 104 not out to help his side overhaul Gujranwala’s modest total of 222 for the loss of only 3 wickets.Tariq hit 11 fours and one six during his marathon innings of 158 balls, as Karachi romped home in 48.1 overs. Zahid Ghouri and skipper Mansoor Khan also batted well for the winners, getting 37 (46 balls, 8 fours) and 29 (49 balls, 1 four), respectively.Earlier, Rajesh Ramesh displayed some fine seam and swing to restrict Gujranwala to a manageable 222 in their allotted overs.Reaching 154 for 3 by the 34th over, after Asim Munir and Mudassar Mushtaq had batted well for their respective 36 (50 balls) and 31(33 balls), the home side looked well set for big things. However, failing to keep up the momentum, the remaining batsmen lost their wickets at regular intervals, until the last man was out in the 49th over.In the third match, pace man Kashif Raza snapped up four wickets for 35, helping Sheikhupura down Faisalabad by four wickets in a low-scoring encounter at Sheikhupura Stadium.Kashif, who made his ODI debut in last month’s ARY Gold Cup in Sharjah, bowled at a nagging line and length, allowing minimum of liberty to the opposition’s batsmen. After getting rid of wicket keeper Mohammad Salman for 9, the right-handed pace man dismissed Hasnain Haider, Ijaz Mahmood and Sabir Hussain in quick succession to reduce Faisalabad to 74 for 6 by the 18th over, a position from which they did never quite recover.The remaining damage was inflicted by Mohammad Haroon (2 for 15 in 7.1 overs) and Farrukh Majeed (2 for 11 in three overs), as the visitors were sent packing for 127 in 37.1 overs, after being put into bat by the hostsSheikhupura had not a very confident start to their run-chase, as they were reduced to 9 for 2 in the 3rd over. However, a 40-run third wicket partnership between Majid Majeed (14 off 53) and Mohammad Ayub (29 off 63) steered them out of imminent disaster.It was then up to Sarfraz Kazmi and Naseem Abbas to see their side through by the 36th over. Sarfraz remained not out on 21 off 23, whereas Naseem made an unbeaten 11 off the same number of balls.

Sir Paul Condon, the Head of ICC’s Anti Corruption Unit, expressed his gratitude to the PCB upon assisting him in carrying out his duties. Speaking at a press conference at a local hotel, Sir Paul said, “I am delighted by the support rendered by the PCB Chairman and every other concerned person with regard to my working”. He had separately met the PCB Chairman, Justice Malik Mohammad Qayyum of the Lahore High Court and others.Sir Paul’s speech while lacking in substance was profuse in furthering what he has already laid down in his report and recommendations issued last Wednesday.He vowed to reduce the bane of match fixing by the 2003 World Cup, saying, “I cannot guarantee to completely eliminate corruption from the great game of cricket, I can, however, assure that it would be reduced to a minimum by the next World Cup”.After giving details of the personnel attached to the ACU, including three former investigators from British police, a security manager and a computer expert, Sir Paul, a former police commissioner himself, went on to reveal that he had at first refused to take up this particular job. However, he only accepted the task after seeking a number of assurances from the ICC.These assurances include the sincerity and earnestness of the cricket world in rooting out corruption, independence in carrying out his duties, and provision of the above-mentioned full-time colleagues.Refraining from divulging the names of individual cricketers involved in corruption, as it could be detrimental to the legal aspects of the process, Sir Paul claimed, “sadly, there still are a number of players whose involvement in shady activities can’t be denied and we are sincerely hoping to cleanse the game of such names”.Calling the players marring the reputation of cricket by their dishonest activities as cowards, Sir Paul Condon discussed in depth, the different ways and means through which a match could be fixed, ranging from the toss to underperformance in batting, bowling and fielding. Other means include corrupting groundsmen, umpires and others.Discussing the role of Cricket Boards, Sir Paul lauded their collective efforts against corruption and went on say, “the Qayyum Report in Pakistan and King Commission’s Report in South Africa are some of the efforts by individual Boards, which has also helped me a great deal in my investigations”.Stressing that the ICC is to discuss his recommendations in its June meeting, Sir Paul stated that his report was just a preliminary step and that, “apart from interviewing various individuals, his Unit has to visit India to look into alleged links between match fixing and organized crime”.He also showed intentions of investigating the allegations by Chris Lewis, a former England pacer, against a number of players. The investigation of match fixing relating to the ICC Trophy held in Dacca in 1998 is also on the cards. He declined to comment on investigations on specific players, matches or series because he felt that his inquiries may be compromised.In the end, Sir Paul Condon commended the efforts of journalists around the world, who through their investigative reporting set the course for further probing of the matter.Identifying the personnel indulging in match fixing as greedy and opportunistic, he also praised all those cricketers who had opposed all temptations to indulge in corrupt practices. He stated he would like to come back to Pakistan again and praised the cooperation and support he received on this first visit.

The IPL franchises are set to release several high-profile players ahead of the 2013 season, to meet the October 31 deadline for finalising the players they would like to retain ahead of the trading window and player auction. Mumbai Indians captain Harbhajan Singh and Kings XI Punjab’s Stuart Broad could be on that list. Johan Botha, the South African offspinner who was bought by Rajasthan Royals for $950,000 in 2011, was one of the big names released.The trading window, when the names of the released players will have to be made public opens on November 19, but they can only be bought during the auction in 2013.Harbhajan had led Mumbai Indians during the 2012 IPL and two Champions League Twenty20 editions – including their victorious campaign in 2011 – and though the franchise officially denied the news, a source told ESPNcricinfo that Harbhajan could be “released first and then bid for during the player auction”.Apart from Botha, Royals also let go of former England captain Paul Collingwood ($250,000), Sri Lanka batsman Dinesh Chandimal ($50,000) and the young Australian fast bowler Alister McDermott, who had joined the franchise as a replacement player last season. In all, the Royals released 15 names and the strength of their present squad is 16.According to the franchise, a big reason for Botha’s release was that he did not feature consistently in the fifth IPL. “We had to rationalise the costs,” a Royals official said. “A lot is going to change after the 2013 season so we are gearing up for that and are having a re-look at the structure and the composition of the team.”Royals decided to retain two other replacement players they had recruited last season: West Indies leg spinner Sameul Badree and England batsman Owais Shah.England’s Twenty20 captain, Broad, has not yet played an IPL game and that wait could be extended. Broad was bought by Kings XI ahead of IPL 2011 but missed both subsequent seasons. A franchise official said the decision to offload Broad was primarily because he would be on England duty for most of IPL 2013.Besides Broad, Kings XI released six more cricketers, including Abhishek Nayar and Ramesh Powar. Nayar, who was bought for $800,000 at the 2011 auction, was considered “overpriced”. Australia’s Nathan Rimmington and James Faulkner and the Himachal Pradesh duo of Paras Dogra and Vikramjeet Malik were also let go by Kings XI.Kings XI will now have nine slots vacant ahead of the trading window and player auction, since Abhinav Bali and Shalabh Srivastava were suspended till May 15 due to their alleged misdeeds during a TV sting operation.Pune Warriors, whose captain in 2011, Sourav Ganguly, announced his decision to withdraw from the next IPL, is set to release five more cricketers, with New Zealand’s Jesse Ryder being the most prominent. Though all the names could not be confirmed, it was learnt that Warriors will release three overseas players, including Ryder, and two domestic players, including Sachin Rana.Kolkata Knight Riders, who had one of the smallest squads with 26 players in 2012, released four players. Jayadev Unadkat, the left-arm seamer from Saurashtra, was left out because the team management thought they were under utilising him. “We have three Indian medium-pacers in L Balaji, Pradeep Sangwan and Shami Ahmed. Last year Jaydev did not get a game and we felt he might get a chance somewhere else,” a Knight Riders official said.Chiraj Jaani (Saurashtra), Iresh Saxena (Bengal) and Sanju Samson (Kerala) were the three other domestic players released by Knight Riders.Some of the franchises questioned the timing of the October 31 deadline. “If you are asking to me take a decision, this should have happened after the trading window because then the franchises could have had the chance of trading them instead of releasing them,” a franchise official said.Another official from a different franchise agreed with the view, saying he had told his bosses that it was better to wait for the window to open. “I feel I can retain the players now and trade when the window opens. This deadline only offers some franchises whose squad strength is a little too big and an opportunity to have a re-look. I think all the franchises would look at reducing a certain amount (of players) and then look forward to the trading window.”However, all the franchises were not on the same page. “It’s a double-edged sword and we would prefer such a deadline before the trading window since it allows to get rid of a player if we just do not want him,” an official said. “No franchise can be sure whether they would be able to trade a player whom they wish to, and if they cannot they will have to retain him. This deadline helps us in avoiding it.”